“She and Dudamel, who demonstrated a strong musical chemistry, began the concerto with sweet poise for one of those memorable Tchaikovskian melodies that the composer makes you remember because (unstable of mind?) he never brings it back. He’s off, on to other soulful, contentious and sometimes vodka-soaked things — Tchaikovsky was recovering from a disastrous marriage in Switzerland in the spring of 1878 and perhaps dreaming of a forbidden love for a young violinist.

Batiashvili, whose technique is impeccable and whose tone is richly soulful, was there for all the emotional and violinistic swings. She dreamed with Tchaikovsky and escaped with Tchaikovsky and threw it all to the wind when that seemed a thrilling thing to do.

She also reminded us, as we need reminding, that there is nothing new with the wider world’s longstanding compulsion to come to terms with Russia, to say nothing of Russians’ own longstanding attempts to do the same.”

Mark Swed – Los Angeles Times